Home > Edge > Manufacturing Edge > White Papers > Integrated Edge Management in Smart Manufacturing - White Paper > Edge to cloud continuum overview
The edge to cloud continuum describes distributed computing and network infrastructure management to meet the performance, security, and cost efficiencies of an edge ecosystem. Organizations can choose an edge-only computing platform or adopt a multicloud computing platform where both edge and cloud computing support workload mobility and balancing.
The following figure provides the taxonomy of the edge to cloud continuum, existing edge capabilities at each facility, and future requirements for edge computing. The depiction plays a significant role in providing options for facilities to balance compute, storage, and network resource management.
Note: A IEM model design that focuses on edge capabilities is covered in IEM model design chapter here.
Note: This figure was adapted from the Gartner Understanding Edge Computing infographic.